


Wasn't Expecting That

by Memories_Musings



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-03-20 22:06:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13726932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Memories_Musings/pseuds/Memories_Musings
Summary: Ongoing Vanity drabbles/short fics





	1. Chapter 1

Charity wasn’t sure what her motivations were really, that first kiss - whisky fuelled, unexpected, but full of fire after Vanessa’s home truths - was the exploitation of an unexpected moment. She hadn’t ever really considered Vanessa like that before, objectively she was an attractive woman, and she didn’t discriminate based on gender but Vanessa had always just been there, another person in the back drop of Emmerdale life. Even with the Frank and Megan thing she hadn’t really pinged on her radar. 

She had seized a moment, where someone - Vanessa - had seen through her bullshit and called her on it, it was refreshing, it was different, it was new. And then when she cut that little bit too close for comfort Charity did what she did best - she went into aggressor mode, turning the situation to her advantage. A drunken kiss wasn’t much to have over someone, but at the time the whisky was talking and she was lonely, and Vanessa was there and attractive and there was a frisson of something between them as they sniped back and forth. 

What she hadn’t expected was, after that initial kiss, her own body’s reaction was to surge forward again, claiming her soft lips once more; and what really threw her for a loop was Vanessa’s eager reciprocation after that, as if the second touch of their lips had kicked her body and brain back into gear. Where Charity had been cornering Vanessa into the love seat arm, then it became more of an even keel as Vanessa pushed back, kissed back. The lust in her belly ignited as Vanessa’s tongue ran along her lip, and Charity couldn’t let her have the upper hand, moving her hand up into Vanessa’s hair, pulling her in closer, harder with a hand at the back of her neck. The kiss became somewhat sloppy from there, from a mixture of desire and definitely some of the whisky.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Add-on after The Kiss.

When Charity draws back, opening her eyes she can’t help the sigh that she releases - Vanessa is a really good kisser, and that kiss was long overdue. She can’t help the grin that stretches over her face as their eyes meet, foreheads touch and she sees the corners of Vanessa’s eyes crinkle with her own smile. She nudges her nose against Vanessa’s and bites her lip.

“You really are very good at that.” She comments, her voice still soft with the sigh.

“I’m good at other things too.” Vanessa husks back and Charity can’t help but lean in again to bring their lips together once more. They’re like magnets really - all the push and pull from the last week has her wanting to make sure they stay close this time.

The fact that they’re snogging in the middle of the street like a pair of teenagers with nowhere to go doesn’t really register in her mind - not much other than how good kissing Vanessa feels does - until Vanessa’s hand, that had been curled around her hip ends up under her top and the coldness of her fingers on heated skin causes her to yelp into the kiss, pulling back, foreheads touching again. 

“You’re freezing, babe. I can think of a few things we can do to fix that, but maybe not here, yeah?”

Vanessa smiles again and Charity wants to see more of that - this week and Vanessa’s indifference and refusal to play into her hands like all the men before her has her hungry for her smile, her laugh, her kisses, anything other than the hard, blank look in her eye that swiftly shut her up and caused a pang of hurt in her chest no matter how justified it was at times. 

“Come on then.” Vanessa says softly into the small space between their lips before leaning down to steal one more kiss before drawing back. Charity’s hands fall from Vanessa’s shoulders, their fingers bump as they turn to head to Tug Ghyll and Charity feels her heart flutter when Vanessa loosely links their fingers together, tugging her along behind her, looking back over her shoulder at her with dark eyes and a smile on her lips. 

Charity can feel herself falling. She swallows hard, pushing any worrisome thoughts to the side and instead focusing on the feel of Vanessa’s fingers tangled with hers, and the fluttering in her chest as Vanessa unlocks her front door and leads her inside.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the many ways my brain has concocted for after The Selfie that's to come.

Charity takes a deep breath, holds it as the taxi slows in front of the gate, tries to school her face into a smug grin, isn’t sure she manages.

Vanessa climbs out of the taxi with a laugh and bids the taxi driver goodnight with a smile; she’s teetering slightly in her heels on the cobbles and when she turns she’s rummaging in her bag presumably looking for her keys. She hasn’t noticed that Charity’s there and she takes a moment to drink her in - the low cut of her black dress peeking through the open lapels of her coat, the glittering necklace that catches in the street light, the painted red of her lips.

“Having some trouble there buttercup?”

Vanessa jumps, startled, putting a hand dramatically to her chest as her eyes fly up to see the intruder. “Jesus, Charity. Were you trying to give me a heart attack?”

“Just being a concerned citizen, babe, your friendly neighbourhood barkeep making sure all the drunken folk make it back in one piece…even if they did decide our bar's not good enough…” Charity says, faking an unaffected air.

Vanessa scoffs, rolling her eyes as she continues towards her door and the intense woman leaning against it. “Do you often lurk in people’s doorways waiting for them to return or am I special?” she shoots back, but she doesn’t give her a chance to reply before she’s asking the by now familiar question: “What do you want Charity?”

It’s as she gets closer that she notices the red of Charity’s nose, she’s obviously been waiting a while in the cold and it causes a little flutter of Vanessa’s heart. She stamps it down, she really doesn’t know where they stand, where she stands with Charity and her life, and she’s a little bit fed up with the back and forth. Even if it has led to some phenomenal ‘make-up’ sex.

Charity looks away sharply, burrowing her hands in her pocket, before she forces herself to look up, to meet Vanessa’s eyes.

"Are we gonna do this out in the cold babe or are you going to let me in?” She looks at the hand that Vanessa’s holding her keys in meaningfully.

“What do you want Charity?” Vanessa repeats, the alcohol from the cocktails she drank earlier making her braver, pushing her to stand her ground.

Charity huffs, she’s cold and tired, and knows that she’s already admitted more to this woman than she has to anyone before, but she might just have to give her even more.

“I got your message…you looked hot babe. Wanted to see you.” She tries, hoping it’s enough for Vanessa to mellow just a little, to open the door and let them inside. Here, outside, she feels exposed, bare. But maybe that’s just how she feels with Vanessa, like she’s opening herself up and she’s terrified of the power she’s putting in her hands.

It seems to do something - Vanessa smiles a little, more like smirks really, but she doesn’t move any further forward. They’re about a meter apart and charity wishes she was brave enough to move towards her.

“Oh yeah?” She asks, her voice low and her eyes dark as she steps forwards, right into Charity’s personal space and Charity clenches her hands into fists in her pockets to stop herself from reaching out. Their eyes are locked and Charity’s more than a little mesmerised as Vanessa leans right in, her nose bumping in to Charity’s, her breath puffing on her lips. Charity’s eyes flutter closed, her head canting forward to bring her lips to Vanessa’s.

She’s met with nothing but fresh air and her eyes fly open in confusion.

Vanessa’s looking at her with a smirk, one hand leaning on the door handle to her left.

“You’re going to need to scoot if you want me to open the door.” She smirks, her eyes glistening and Charity wants to growl in frustration. She bites her tongue, rolling her eyes as she moves out of the way of the door, trailing after Vanessa into the warmth hoping she’s brave enough to actually speak her mind. Or, really, her heart.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set at some point after the second cellar visit, before all the AWESOME content we've had in the last week, it gets a little bit smutty and I'm not quite sure where it came from.

Charity is trying not to stare, she really is, and yet somehow her eyes keep straying towards the booth in the back. More specifically towards _Vanessa_ in the booth in the back. And if she's going to be really honest, towards Vanessa's _boobs_ , shown off by her low cut black dress in the booth in the back. She feels like, what she assumes, a teenage boy feels like the first time he sees proper cleavage, because Vanessa sure does know how to show of her assets, and Charity is very appreciative. She knows what they look like free of whatever wonder bra Vanessa's got them strapped into today to have them sitting there basically staring at her, she's felt them underneath the pads of her fingers and the flat of her tongue and it's more than a little bit distracting. 

Vanessa's on a Girls' Night with Tracy and Rhona, they're a couple of bottles of wine down and her lips are stained red from the wine she's been drinking and Charity can't help but want to kiss those lips, taste the wine on her tongue and see where it leads them. Vanessa's dress is doing wonders for Charity's libido, not that she normally needs much encouragement when it comes to Vanessa, but this dress? It's tight in all the right places, stretching over her hips, curving around her bum, sleek down her arms, showing off her slightly toned biceps, and it's also impossibly low cut. So low cut that Charity thinks if Vanessa isn't careful when she leans over the bar when she comes back to order the next bottle of wine she might just flash poor old Daz who's sat at the bar, and Charity really doesn't want to analyse why the thought of that bothers her so much. But it will be Vanessa that comes to the bar, she's knows it will, because she had that little smirk on her lips when she came in, peeling her leather jacket off at the bar as she ordered, her eyes not leaving Charity's face for a second, so Charity knows she saw her eyes drop to her cleavage, knows that she saw the flash of lust in her eyes before Charity was able to temper it, saw the way she licked her lips as she lent forward, trying to gain any advantage over her. It hadn't worked. Vanessa like this - dressed to the nines and sexy as hell - had the advantage, Charity had shown her hand, and Vanessa had leapt on it. 

_A bottle of your finest red please, Charity._

That smirk was still in place as she'd ordered, mirroring similar words from that day before Christmas with Veronica, and Charity knew her own eyes had darkened as her mind went straight to the heart racing, breath catching desire that had come from her defence of Vanessa and dismissal of Veronica, and then to the cellar. The cellar where that first kiss happened, and then where Vanessa had clung to her, hungrily kissing her as soon as their bodies collided. Her hands had been everywhere - in her hair, under her shirt, unbuttoning her trousers - and then she had been pushed unceremoniously backwards and she squawked in protest until her butt hit the seat of that red chair and then Vanessa was kneeling in front of her, eyes full of fire, of desire, and running her hands up her thighs before she pulled Charity's head down so that their lips could meet in a fierce kiss while her other hand made swift work of her zip, sliding into her panties and moving around to grope at her butt, squeezing and making her gasp into the kiss. At her gasp Vanessa had growled, that was the only word for it, low in her throat and her kisses became hungrier, more demanding and Charity was dizzy with it, with want. With need. Vanessa had kissed her hard, the hand still in her hair raking nails softly softly softly along her scalp and Charity wasn't sure she'd ever felt this much at once. 

Then suddenly Vanessa's mouth was gone, and she surged forward trying to find her lips again. She mewed in protest when Vanessa moved her lips out of reach, her lips pulled up in a smirk and her eyes dark, so so dark. It was like that soft sound was the last Vanessa could handle, the hand in her hair was removed suddenly, trailed fire in its wake as Vanessa moved her focus to her trousers, or more specifically to removing them. When her second hand danced at her waist band and Vanessa's mouth was on her neck Charity was burning, her eyes fluttering closed as Vanessa sucked on her pulse point while she tried to pull Charity's trousers down. She lifted her hips, simultaneously striving for contact and giving her room to remove them. Vanessa tugged impatiently, pulling them down her thighs, trailing her nails along her burning skin as she exposed it to the cool cellar air. Charity fisted her hand in Vanessa's hair, guiding her away from her neck and back to her mouth. They kissed fiercely while Vanessa was still pushing her trousers down, down and away. The kiss was sloppy, sloppy and fierce and when Vanessa pulled back, dragging her bottom lip out with her teeth, nipping it slightly Charity moaned. This woman may just be the death of her. She didn't have much time to mourn the loss of the kiss when Vanessa's hands pushed apart her knees and Charity's eyes fluttered open to watch as Vanessa trailed soft touches and wet kisses up the inside of her thighs while dark, dark eyes looked up at her. 

_Jesus._

When she reached her intended destination Charity swore, her hand moving to fist in Vanessa's hair as she nudged her knickers to the side and with that first flick of her tongue Charity knew she wasn't going to last long. Vanessa was a fast learner, she picked up on the silent, and not-so-silent, cues her body was sending, licking and sucking and kissing with abandon and Charity couldn't have been quiet even if she'd needed to. It was too good. _Vanessa_ was too good. She was racing towards an orgasm at an embarrassingly fast pace but she didn't have enough brain power to care, not when Vanessa was making little moans as she worked Charity up so thoroughly. When her nails raked over her inner thigh before two fingers entered her teasingly she almost came undone. And then Vanessa started to move them, to push inside her while her tongue, teeth and lips continued their assault. She bit her lip as she felt the beginnings of an orgasm tug at her insides. God Vanessa was good at this. It hadn't taken much more, and if it had been anyone but Vanessa Charity might have been embarrassed as she came...hard, pushing herself harder against Vanessa's mouth, wanting to eek out the sensations as long as possible as the stars danced behind her eyelids and she gripped the arms of the chair. She felt Vanessa's smile as she kissed her inner thighs softly before sitting back on her haunches with hooded dark eyes staring up at her hungrily, a little smirk tugging at the corner of her lips.

_Fuck._

Charity hadn't realised she'd spoken it aloud; Vanessa had chuckled then, a sinful chuckle and Charity's eyes had flown open to meet hers, seeing the want in them directed right at her. She'd wanted to kiss that smirk right off her face. She reached down and, with a finger under her chin, tilted her head, was so so ready to use that to guide her up to meet her, to have Vanessa in her lap with that little skirt pushed up and make her feel exactly what she had just felt when there was a yelp from the direction of the stairs and reality had come crashing back down as quickly as the colour drained from Paddy's face before he'd swiftly hotfooted it back up the stairs with a "People are waiting." squeaked out as he fled.

Vanessa's face had been a picture, part mortified, part very much still aroused. Charity wished the lock hadn't been removed, wished that they could've locked it behind them and finished what they started. But now life had interrupted. She'd pulled Vanessa up anyway, kissed her soundly, tasting herself on her lips before they'd both scrambled to make themselves decent, to pull their clothes back on properly and head back up to the pub to face Paddy and his impossibly white face. 

Charity had repaid Vanessa in kind a few nights later, somewhere between Christmas and New Year when all she'd wanted was a bit of me time and instead she'd ended up in Vanessa's bed with her head between her legs. The sounds she'd made were much better than any shitty Christmas song Charity had ever heard. 

_Fuck._

Charity shook her head, trying to push those memories away for the time being, they certainly weren't helping her staring problem. She just had to hope that Vanessa was planning on sticking around until closing time, because then she may be able to convince her that a repeat was necessary.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Domestic fluff with some of Charity's thoughts on her relationships 'til this point.

They'd been texting on and off all day and Charity had been pleasantly surprised when after a knock, the back door had opened to reveal Vanessa, standing with a smile on her face and a bottle of wine in her hand. She'd welcomed her in with a smile and planted one on her cheek, taking the wine from her hands at the same time. She turned with a smile and headed for the kitchen, plonking the bottle on the table before taking two glasses from the cupboard. She turned around to find Vanessa standing behind one of the chairs, hands working the backrest somewhat nervously, and a smile on her lips when their eyes met. 

She returned the smile in kind, sauntering over with the glasses in hand. She wanted to kiss that smile - so she did; once, twice. 

"Do you want a glass?" She asked after pulling away, her breath puffing on Vanessa's lips. Vanessa's eyes fluttered open and Charity moved back, the eye contact at such close proximity a bit too intense. 

"Yeah, please." She replied, pulling out the chair and dropping into it with a sigh. "So, how was Noah's birthday?" She asked, curious. 

"Eh..." Charity started, not sure how much she wanted to share, how much she should share. "Yeah, good, good. Took 'em bowling." She tries for blaze, isn't quite sure she makes it, but Vanessa doesn't push, just smiles and lifts the glass of wine to her lips. She doesn't want to overshare on the whole Joe situation, doesn't want to taint this thing they've got with memories of her past relationships gone wrong. "Absolutely annihilated them." She says with a smirk.

"Oh well done, you beat a 2 year old and a 14 year old." She drawled, smirk playing at her lips as she took another sip of her wine.

"Oi!" she shot back, laughing along with Vanessa. 

They'd taken their glasses to the couch; Vanessa had curled her feet under herself, turning to face Charity. At some point they'd put the tele on in the background, alternating between watching it and chatting. It was all so...normal. In the best possible way. 

Charity doesn't think she's ever had normal before, had always thought it boring.

With Cain it's always been a bit of a merry-go-round; a heady combination of passion, need, and a large dose of familiarity. She'd thought him her forever love, but all they did was keep hurting each other as they hurtled together, not caring what damage they did along the way. Sometimes, when she really thought about it, it was almost as if if they could make it work then she could convince herself all of the crap that had happened in the aftermath of that first time would've been worth it. Chas had called it an addiction once, and maybe she was right. 

With Chris it had been about security, about building something together, and for a while it had been working. Until that thing with Zoe, and then she'd been pulled back on to the merry-go-round with Cain, and their relationship had twisted, had become dark and angry, and then Chris had killed himself in his twisted revenge plot. She still saw his face as he died sometimes in her dreams. 

With Zoe it had been the first relationship she'd had with a woman and it had been so different. It had been selfish, but it had been the only thing she had that was actually hers at that time.

With Jai it had been love, or as close to it as she could manage at the time. He'd been about safety, and security, and family. They'd been happy in their little unit; her, him and Noah. But then he'd betrayed her, and she him, and their love had turned sour. She'd turned him sour. He'd changed from the man who loved her, she drove him to be someone that would lock someone he had claimed to love in a container and leave them for dead. 

With Declan it had felt different; she'd wanted to be faithful, to take over the 'dales together with him as her right hand man. They'd been great...until they hadn't. She hadn't wanted a baby - she could barely handle her lack of a relationship with Debbie, and Noah's disappointment, never mind another. And then they'd changed, he'd changed; and he'd been another man who'd decided she was no longer worth any time. He'd tried to kill her. Yet another man who had put his hands on her with malice; the list was too long at this point.

With Frank it wasn't really about him, it was the familiar pull to someone who knew the darker side of life like she had. It had ended up being more about feeling anything, being with anyone, making someone want her, than it had about him. He'd be right when he said she was lonely.  
With Vanessa...well with Vanessa they could have moments like this and it doesn't feel awkward, doesn't feel like she's wearing someone else's skin, waiting for the other shoe to drop. 

She doesn't notice that Vanessa's asked her a question, she's too wrapped up in her thoughts, until she nudges her with her foot.

"Hey! If I'm boring you all you need to do is say." Vanessa's words finally break through her haze, and she jumps at being prodded.

Her head shoots around, her eyes wide as she replies: "Sorry, sorry in a world of my own."

"Penny for them?" She asks, tilting her head to the side as she pushes her feet under Charity's thighs, wiggling her toes to keep them warm. 

"It'd cost you more than a penny cupcake." She replies with a smile. "Just been a long couple of days." 

"Okay," Vanessa replies, and Charity is thankful that she doesn't push for more. She leans forward, her arms and head resting on top of her knees. "If you want to share I'll listen." 

Charity leans in to meet her lips, kissing her softly before pulling back with a soft "Thanks". And then she meets her eyes and sees Vanessa's sparkle and moves right back in to bring their lips together again. 

They kiss languidly and Charity shifts on the sofa, turning her whole body to face Vanessa's, manoeuvring her legs either side of hers as she uses Vanessa's calves for balance. She drags her hands up her calves, over her knees and down the sides of her thighs as Vanessa's hands tangle in her hair, pulling her closer, holding her in the kiss. 

They're interrupted when Chas comes in from the pub and Vanessa pulls back with a smile. Charity meets her eyes with a smirk at Chas' words.

"Oh, don't mind me...just looking for my phone. Please, return to whatever you were doing." She trills with a smirk. She's pleased to see that Vanessa doesn't flinch, that there's no embarrassment there on her face as she turns to look at Chas. Charity, Chas notices, can't keep her eyes off of Vanessa's face. 

"Sorry Chas, didn't mean to take over your living room." She says with a smile, and as she removes her hands from Charity's hair she tugs on a curl and Chas' heart melts a little. Her cousin has found a good one this time. 

Chas waves Vanessa's words away, hiding her smile as she turns to search the bookcase. 

"I think it's at the toaster." Charity suggests, finally tearing her eyes away from Vanessa's face. 

"Aha." Chas exclaims, brandishing the phone. "I'll, uh, leave you two lovebirds to it." She says, waggling her eyebrows with a smile as she heads back into the bar.

"So, um, do you wanna come upstairs?" Charity asks, her eyes darting everywhere but Vanessa's face. Then Vanessa's fingers are under her chin, tilting her face up so that their eyes meet. 

"Yes." She says simply, leaning forward and pressing her lips to Charity's in a brief closed mouth kiss. 

They'd headed up the stairs with their fingers tangled together, and Charity can't help the flutter of her heart at how right this feels, at how Vanessa's become her safe place. Maybe sometime she'll be able to actually get the words out when Vanessa's willing to listen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can probably tell which episodes I haven't gotten to yet from my descriptions of the other relationships - there's so many episodes!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What did you do?" // Charity's back isn't cracking, but it wasn't shapes she was throwing at the time.
> 
> Jointly inspired from Chas' comment about Charity's back and a [fic prompt post on tumblr](https://whcczes.tumblr.com/post/169717391964/prompts-list) that I'm going to see if I can work my way through to get back into the swing of this writing malarkey.

It's when Charity winces into her kiss for a second time that Vanessa pulls back with a frown. 

“You okay? What did you do?” Vanessa queries, concern lacing her voice as she takes in the lines of pain on Charity's face. She's not expecting the immediate 180 that Charity's expression undergoes.

"More like what did we do, babe." She says, waggling her eyebrows, chuckling at Vanessa's puzzled expression. "Ya know, last night. Tweaked my back a bit, didn't I, for a tiny person you must be heavier than I thought." She lifts her chin almost in challenge, smirk firmly on her lips. 

She yelps as Vanessa pinches her waist, narrowing her eyes in reprimand. 

"Oi!" 

"What? I'm only speaking the truth, babe. Didn't say it wasn't worth it, did I?" She says with a grin, moving her hands down to the small of Vanessa's back and linking her fingers together, holding Vanessa in place against her, and leaning in for another kiss. 

Vanessa presses forward, leading them backwards towards the bed as they continue to kiss languidly. It's different this, these soft kisses and easy banter. When Charity's calves meet the bed she stretches a hand back to support herself on the bed as Vanessa follows the trajectory of her body, her knees either side of Charity's thighs. 

"Ow." Charity exclaims, breaking the kiss, as her back twinges again as she tries to support them on her arm. 

Vanessa can't help the laugh that falls from her lips at the pout on Charity's lips.

"Okay, that's it. Turn over." Vanessa demands, standing up from the bed, hands on her hips. Charity looks bemused for a second, a frown digging at her brows. "Come on." Vanessa prompts, gesturing for her to roll over with her hands, only waiting a beat before putting her hands at Charity's hips, encouraging her to roll over. "I'm not going to fool around with you if you're in pain every time we kiss, and I have been told I'm good with my hands."

"Oh don't I know it." Charity drawls, a sigh ending her words as she feels Vanessa undo her bra, pulling the back away from either side to leave her back free. 

The bed dips as Vanessa flings a leg over, situating herself on Charity's thighs. She leans down, droppoing a soft kiss between Charity's shoulder blades, causing goosebumps to erupt on her skin.

"Where's it hurt?" She asks before lifting her head, her breath ghosting over the spot she's just kissed.

"Lower back, babe." She replies, the anticipation of Vanessa's hands on her causing her heart to flutter. She knows Vanessa's good with her hands, she has firsthand experience of just how good after all, and she's sure she can turn her hand to this.

When Vanessa's fingers touch her skin she can't help but sigh in relief, she doesn't do well with anticipation. When she starts to move them, to put pressure on when Charity is sure she must have knots the size of golf balls she can't help but groan, smiling when she hears Vanessa's chuckle at the sound. 

"You are good at this." 

"Did you doubt me for a second?" She asks and Charity knows from the sound of her voice that she's got that smug smirk on her lips. 

"Course no-" Her words are cut off by another groan in part pain, part relief when Vanessa reaches a particular tender point. 

"Sorry." Vanessa apologises, unsure if that was pain or pleasure, or both. "I don't think I have any massage oil, so I'll take it slow. If it's not helping just holler, yeah?"

"Yeah, No - don't stop. I trust you. It can't hurt more than it was before." Charity assures her, eager for the hands that had frozen in place to start moving again. When they do she closes her eyes on another sigh - god Vanessa's good with her hands.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little drabble set after the bar reunion scene.

Its later. Much later.

After clothes were grabbed at greedily, and hastily discarded as soon as the door to Charity's bedroom clicked shut.

After soft words and gentle apologies were silenced by hungry lips and turned into moans.

After kisses were trailed needily over every inch of exposed skin, as hands caressed in their wake.

After skin on skin contact brought sighs from kiss swollen lips, and fingers toyed, played, worshipped.

After moans picked up in pace and reached crescendo, hands tangling in hair, grabbing tight to bed sheets, lips on any inch of skin within reach prolonging the pleasure.

After lazy kisses were trailed up bodies, and hungry eyes met before lips did once more.

After the pleasure was returned, relief and disbelief written in lipstick marks across pale skin.

After the frantic pace died down and a slow, languid, different kind of thing emerged.

After gentle caresses and eyes full of warmth.

After lips and teeth and tongue were saying more than words can often convey.

They're curled up against one another, Vanessa wrapped around Charity's back, one hand settled over her waist and curling around the opposite hip.

"Charity..." Vanessa ventures, voice soft and breathy against the back of her neck. She's not sure if she's still awake, thinks she is.

Charity hums in response, hand moving down her forearm, spreading goosebumps in its wake as she links her fingers through the hand on her hip.

Vanessa's not sure she wants to say anything; not sure she wants to break this moment of contentment. Especially after the few weeks they've had. Charity's had, really. And she cringes slightly at herself - she's not exactly made it much better for her - even if it does come from a place of l- care.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry." She feels Charity's body tense ever so slightly, but she continues, squeezing her fingers as she does.

"I should've stuck to my word - let you deal with this your way. And I will. This is your past, your pain, but I want to be here for you, wh- _if_ you need it. I shouldn't have pushed so hard. Or gone behind your back. I panicked. I've not been through what Tracy has, what _you_ have, I don't know what it's like. But I do know I want to help, if- if, I can."

"You are helping, babe. This is helping." She says, voice scratchy, and Vanessa knows her eyes will be glassy with tears. She squeezes her fingers again, gets a squeeze in return. 

"I want to keep helping, and when I'm not, I need you to tell me. And make sure I hear it. I know I can be impulsive, I'm trying to be better. I just hate that this is happening, that it's happened to you and I can't make it better." She leans forward, placing a soft kiss on Charity's naked shoulder. Charity lifts their joined hands and Vanessa panics for a split second, thinking she's said the wrong thing and Charity's leaving.

Instead she turns her body, swapping Vanessa's hand to her other and placing it back on her hip as she rolls over to face her.

Vanessa was right, her eyes are a bit glassy and her heart clenches in response. She's beautiful even in sadness but Vanessa still wants to chase it away.

Charity leans right up into her, nose nudging hers as she meets her eyes.

"I'm never shy when it comes to that, babe. But please, don't make me keep having to. You really can be a hot head y'know, and that's coming from me." She chuckles before leaning forward to bring their lips together softly.

Vanessa pulls back, searching Charity's eyes to see if she's really okay with this, with them.

"I promise to try. I'll be here; whenever you need me."

"And what if I just want you?"

"I'll be here for that too."


End file.
